Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
The Misplaced Potter
Chapter 15
In which nothing happens
Henry found himself confined to Hogwarts Castle after Christmas break. Not due to any wrongdoing on his part for no one knew that he was the student that dared trespass on the third floor but due to the harshness of the highland winter. A thick blanket of snow all but buried the grounds for three months. Professor Sprout had to melt pathways to the greenhouses for her and for the students daily. The weather had even caused the cancellation of further flying lessons.
Henry and his classmates immersed themselves in their studies to pass the long, cold days. In addition to their classes and their nightly study sessions, they also found themselves delving into singular interests of their own. This became a necessity for continued harmony amongst them because the constant confinement with each other became grating upon everyone's nerves. The quirks and peccadilloes that each of them had that were easy to overlook in the autumn were sources of irritation in winter.
Daily calisthenics had always been a part of Henry's routine but he and Chris throw themselves into a frenzy of exercise in an effort to keep the frustrations of their confinement at bay more then a desire to get stronger physically. Hermione would sit in an out of the way empty classroom for hours and practice her flute. Maggie and the MacNarney girls would spend much of their free time designing and sewing dresses for themselves.
Winter gave way to spring grudgingly but Henry still found himself a virtual prisoner. As a first former, he could not partake in the occasional forays into the village and the grounds remained uninviting as the frequent spring rains kept the lawns a quagmire. Hermione added to the restraints on Henry's movement in March by devising study schedules for everyone.
"Look at the calendar," she said. "Year end exams are scant weeks away. We really ought to have done this a month sooner."
"Has she always been like this?" Ron Weasley asked Henry in a whisper as Hermione passed around the schedules to the study group. Ron's mother had sent him a howler in January after she received Professor McGonagall's letter informing her that her youngest son had hereto now shown little interest in his class work. Ron had joined the Hufflepuff study group that very evening had had not miss a session since then.
"At least since September," Henry replied as he read the programme that she had outlined.
"This is great, Hermione," Ernie gushed with enthusiasm. "This will definitely make our meetings far more productive.
"What we truly need is someplace where we can practice brewing potions," Susan said. "Hannah and I asked Professor Snape if we could use his classroom but he refused."
"You grew up here, Maggie," Chris said. "Don't you know of a room that would be suitable?"
Maggie shrugged. "Half the castle is empty so I'm sure that there is. I'll ask the house elves and see what they say. They would know what room would be best for our needs."
"I hope we find one quickly," Ron said. "If I mess up one more potion I think Snape'll throw me into a cauldron."
"Well then," Ernie said as the laughter died down. "Shall we get to history?"
Two evenings later, Maggie had everyone assemble in a hallway on the seventh floor. When Henry arrived, she was standing beside a small humanoid creature that Henry assumed was a house elf. It stood less then four feet high. It had long pointed ears, long thin pointed nose and large protruding blue eyes that shone with friendliness and intelligence. Spindly arms and legs poked out from underneath a thick forest green beach towel that the house elf had cut a hole in and wore as a poncho.
"Alright gang," Maggie said when the last of the group had finally arrived in the person of Susan Bones. "This is Gabby. I told her of our problem and she has a solution for us."
"Behind this wall is the come and go room," the house elf said in a very squeaky voice. "It appears to anyone who has a great need for very specific type of room."
"So it will be a potions laboratory then?" Ron asked.
"It can be but I think we might be better served if we all thought of the perfect study room," Maggie replied. "And not limit ourselves to just one class."
"How do we make the room appear then?" Hermione asked.
"Walk past this wall three times concentrating on what you need," Gabby answered. "A doorway will then appear."
The students formed two rows and followed the house elf's instructions. They marched past the blank wall three times, each of them thinking about what would constitute an ideal study area. As they walked by the wall one final time, a small arched doorway materialized in the middle of it.
When they pushed the door open, they discovered a well-lit room dominated by a low, long wooden table surrounded by well-padded child sized chairs. The walls had large diagrams of plants and maps of the night sky. A shelf ran along one wall filled with scores of books with titles like Basic Brewing, Charm Challenge for Kids, Magical Britain in the Seventeenth Century, and Common Herbs of Scotland.
In the back of the room, opposite of the doorway was a stone table that had five fire pits carved into it. Cauldrons were hanging over each pit. A well-stocked potion ingredients cabinet stood by the table.
The kids wandered in looking about in opened mouth astonishment. They dropped their bags down on the wooden table and slowly turned trying to take in the amazing room. They snatched books from the shelf and flipped through them. They rummaged through the cabinet exclaiming over what all was in there. Gabby began to laugh.
"I guess we must look rather foolish," Hermione sheepishly admitted.
"No, young miss, Gabby does not laugh at you," the house elf replied. "I laugh because the one item that I was sure that I would find in here is not here."
"What's that?" Ernie asked.
"Food!" Gabby snickered. "Children are always hungry yet not one of you thought of snacks. An oversight I will take care of immediately."
"Let's get started then," Hermione said briskly as the elf left. "I think that we should concentration on astronomy for a while then move to tomorrow's potion. Any objections?"
The come and go room rapidly established itself as the hangout for the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor first formers. Chris, Hermione, and Ron persuaded the other first year Gryffindor students to join in with the study group. Their professors noted the improvement of all of them by it was Neville Longbottom got the most from the sessions. By relentlessly brewing potion after potion, he was able to gain enough confidence to where he remained calm in class even under the scorn and abuse heaped upon him by Professor Snape.
The magical room not only aided in the students study but also helped them to relax. A cabinet of board games appeared at the suggestion of Lavender Brown. Volumes of light fiction materialized on the books shelves when Chris grumbled about wanting something to read that had absolutely nothing to do with school.
The unexpected appearance of the headmaster one evening in early April gave them all a turn. They were afraid that he would ban them from the wonderful room.
"Why would I do that?" a laughing Professor Dumbledore asked when Hermione put that question to him. "What teacher would stop his students from studying?"
"We don't study all of the time," Hermione admitted quickly glancing about the room. Ron and Ernie were in the midst of a wizard's chess match as Justin and Henry were playing cribbage. Dean was standing beside an easel with charcoal pencils in his hand. A Teen Witch magazine was lying on the table surrounded by several girls.
"No sane person does, Miss Granger," Professor Dumbledore replied. "Recreation is as important to the mind and body as learning and exercise. From what I gather from your lecturers, all of you are doing very well indeed in your studies. It seems to me that you are striking a proper balance in your lives."
"So, we can keep coming here?" Chris asked who was hiding a Piers Anthony Xanth novel behind his back.
"Of course, Mr. Gallatin," the headmaster said grabbing a banana from the fruit bowl on the table. His eyes fell on the opened Teen Witch, which had several photographs of the latest singing sensation, Trent Dove. "Whom do you think is cuter, Trent Dove or the seeker for Tutshill, Alec Bond?"
The debate he triggered raged for an hour.